How Many Weeks does DD take off (from Pitching) in the Off-Season?

[Towny9]

That period off is a great time to work on the asymmetry that is developed in sports like softball where we only throw with one arm and one side of the body. I suggest players use bands like the Jaegar bands year-round, but the time off from throwing is a really good time to use them. By using them during that time off you keep your arm in shape while still giving it the benefit of the rest.

 

[Top_Notch]

I'm going to link you to a full post/blog, but if you want a summary from it, I will quote it here:

" Good pitchers should have at least 6 consecutive weeks a year where they do not touch a ball. Every medical expert and every strength training expert I have consulted agrees with this, and most suggest 8 weeks. Wait…there is more." -DT

If you want to read more to know more, you'll need to read the linked blog.

 

[chinamigarden]

My vote for 8 was when my dd was
Still playing. She took 2 months off most years.

 

[HunterMO]

It was 7 weeks off this year. DD’s PC recommended no less than 4. This off season (and it will continue) DD did work with resistance bands 3-4 days a week for both legs and arms.

We also had a warmer late Fall/early Winter so DD would also go play basketball in the driveway or at the rec center with friends. She hasn’t been completely inactive but we shut down the “softball” motions.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[BT3100]

Just like most things it varies by kid. When DD was younger we did less than 7 weeks but she needed more. We tried 9 weeks one year and it hurt her progress a little. But its the parents job along with the pitcher to look for those signs that a break is needed or that a longer break may be needed. Our travel org requires all pitchers to take a minimum of 4 weeks off during Christmas break. I imagine that rule came from past experience where parents weren't giving enough time off.

 

[HunterMO]

Just like most things it varies by kid. When DD was younger we did less than 7 weeks but she needed more. We tried 9 weeks one year and it hurt her progress a little. But its the parents job along with the pitcher to look for those signs that a break is needed or that a longer break may be needed. Our travel org requires all pitchers to take a minimum of 4 weeks off during Christmas break. I imagine that rule came from past experience where parents weren't giving enough time off.

The mental break is just as (if not more so) important. We didn’t even talk softball for at least 3 or 4 weeks. Which was probably harder for me than her......


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[BT3100]

The mental break is just as (if not more so) important. We didn’t even talk softball for at least 3 or 4 weeks. Which was probably harder for me than her......


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

True!!! I hear ya. DD still goes to practice but we only practice twice in that 4 week period around Christmas. By the beginning of the 3rd week off she is asking to get back to it. That's when I know she's rested. Still take the 4th week to clear her mind a bit. It works!

 

[STRIKE3]

IMHO.... it is all over the board and depends on what they need to work on.

1. Does the pitcher have correct mechanics is always question #1. In other words....does she know how to pitch? Always question #1. If she does not, if she is a monkey butt, clear the arm, hello elbow, etc. etc pitcher then you need all the time you can have so little time off is warranted. You need that time to learn the mechanics of pitching.

2. If she has the proper mechanics and knows how to pitch then....(realize that knowing how to pitch is different for some) then take as much time off as you need. Focus on weight training, getting quicker and stronger, etc etc. You know how to pitch so take time off and work on your squats, bench, shuttle run, etc. etc.

Again, just depends on the girl but once she it taught correctly and has it figured out then time off is really good. And you can do other things that will only help when she is ready to go again.

Good luck!

S3

 

[HunterMO]

IMHO.... it is all over the board and depends on what they need to work on.

1. Does the pitcher have correct mechanics is always question #1. In other words....does she know how to pitch? Always question #1. If she does not, if she is a monkey butt, clear the arm, hellow elbow, etc. etc pitcher then you need all the time you can have so little time off is warranted. You need that time to learn the mechanics of pitching.

2. If she has the proper mechanics and knows how to pitch then....(realize that knowing how to pitch is different for some) then take as much time off as you need. Focus on weight training, getting quicker and stronger, etc etc. You know how to pitch so take time off and work on your squats, bench, shuttle run, etc. etc.

Again, just depends on the girl but once she it taught correctly and has it figured out then time off is really good. And you can do other things that will only help when she is ready to go again.

Good luck!

S3

Completely agree. Like many discussions on this forum..... definitely need to take your DD's specific situation into account. DD's first year of "real" pitching we took very little time off. For the reasons Strike mentioned above, but also because HC shared pitching duties between 3-4 girls. DD was #2, but HC would do his best to split games between 2 pitchers or even sneak a 3rd in at the end. Being player modified pitch the girls counts never got that high anyways.

Last year (12u) we started seeing a PC and corrected a lot of mechanics. Starting Summer we only had two pitchers and the HC used them as 1a and 1b. They got some heavy work loads at times....though we did our best to have a max pitch count for each. We could never find a consistent 3rd pitcher until Fall. This last year was really tough on DD's pitching. The jump from 10u to 12u was hard on her and we drastically changed her mechanics during the off season. She grew a TON and experienced significant knee pain mid-Summer and again right at the end of Fall. However, the back half of Summer and Fall really showed gains from the new mechanics. We threw some up until Halloween and then shut her down. She didn't touch a ball again until a couple weeks ago. During the down time it was stretching everyday and work with a resistant band 3-4 days a week for both arms and legs. I'm not a fan of weight lifting at her age (HS age is different of course). She naturally carries a lot of muscle. So the bands were used to help keep the supporting joints/tendons/muscles conditioned along with body weight exercises. Air squats, wall squats, assisted dips, push ups, etc. Getting her to do cardio is like pulling teeth, but we've started doing a lot of that in our team workouts.

We eased back into throwing starting with over hand to under hand catch. Then we moved into step pitching and some 80%-Full Speed pitching. With the growth from last year I'm really wanting to avoid going from 0 to 100 too quickly and risking an injury. But, her timing and mechanics don't seem to have grown much rust. She was a little nervous, but quickly realized she hadn't lost anything.

Her Jr High has been putting on open hitting/pitching sessions which she's loved. And tryouts will be the end of February, so she's excited to get back work. So much that she convinced me to let her work on her changeup in the house. No dented walls (yet).

 

[uncdrew]

Yup, us too.

First year we took zero time off. She was 9 and we needed to work on mechanics. In that off-season (Christmas time) she went from P3 to P1 simply because all the work she put in over those months.